Before Yoruha could react, Kakashi chuckled and said, "I also think Yoruha should be promoted to Chūnin."
Not all Chūnin need to go through the Chūnin Exams. In fact, most Chūnin and Jōnin in the major ninja villages are promoted without taking the exams.
After all, considering the elimination mechanism of the Chūnin Exams, it would have been impossible to field so many ninjas during the Fourth Shinobi World War. Therefore, many Chūnin and Jōnin are promoted based on the number of missions completed and their corresponding strength.
Of course, Yoruha has only completed a few missions, all of which were low-level. Even counting the Land of Waves mission, he had only done one B-rank mission.
In terms of mission count, he didn't meet the usual requirements.
However, the Hokage holds the authority to directly promote a ninja to Chūnin or even Jōnin.
As the most powerful ninja in the village, the Hokage naturally has the best judgment of a ninja's strength. Therefore, the Chūnin and Jōnin promoted by the Hokage usually have unquestionable ability.
More importantly, being directly promoted by the Hokage is a form of recognition and an undeniable honor. It also signals to other factions that the Hokage himself stands behind you.
Namikaze Minato was the best example. As a civilian ninja, he married Uzumaki Kushina, became a disciple of Jiraiya, and was selected by the Third Hokage to become the Fourth Hokage.
Besides his overwhelming talent, Minato's political alignment was clear—he was part of the Third Hokage's faction.
Of course, neither Yoruha nor Kakashi cared about this.
Yoruha didn't concern himself with who saw him as "their own," and Kakashi had long accepted his identity as part of the Third Hokage's faction. Being Minato's disciple meant that from the very beginning, Kakashi was aligned with the Third.
So naturally, he supported the Third Hokage's decision to bring Yoruha under his wing.
Originally, the Third Hokage had intended to cultivate Yoruha as the second Namikaze Minato. After all, Yoruha had exceptional talent, a clean background, and was Kakashi's disciple—just like Minato once was.
But Yoruha's growth had already far surpassed his expectations.
Now, the Third Hokage was struggling to determine how best to position Yoruha.
After much thought, he decided to promote Yoruha to Chūnin. This way, he could begin involving him in Konoha's inner workings.
The Third Hokage was already in his sixties. By the time Yoruha turned twenty, he would be well into his seventies. Even if he didn't want to retire by then, his body wouldn't allow him to continue.
He didn't possess the robust physique of the Senju clan. No matter how powerful he had once been, age had significantly diminished his strength.
In fact, he had considered stepping down before.
But there simply wasn't a suitable successor.
Jiraiya had always been unwilling, and his carefree nature wasn't fitting for the position.
Tsunade had her own problems. Originally, Orochimaru was the ideal candidate, but after selecting Minato instead, Orochimaru had been cast aside—and eventually defected.
Danzo? That was unthinkable. Not only was he nearly the same age, but the Third Hokage could never entrust Konoha to someone with such extreme ideologies.
As for the two advisors, they were out of the question. If they hadn't been disciples of the Second Hokage, they wouldn't even qualify as advisors. Their strength simply wasn't enough.
The only somewhat plausible candidate left was Kakashi.
However, after his decline in strength, Kakashi hadn't improved much. His experience was limited, and without overwhelming strength to back him, it was difficult to command respect.
That was the dilemma the Third Hokage faced. Even if he wanted to retire, he had no one to pass the torch to.
But now, after seeing Yoruha, he felt as though he were looking at a young Namikaze Minato.
Of course, Yoruha's experience was still far too shallow—far less than Kakashi's. Since experience couldn't be built in a short time, the only way forward was to make his strength so absolute that no one could question it.
The first step was to raise Yoruha's ninja rank and involve him in village matters.
Yoruha had no idea what the Third Hokage was planning. He merely assumed the old man wanted to put him to work sooner.
That said, he was rather pleased.
He had originally planned to increase his ninja rank so he could take on higher-level missions, earn more money, and gain more combat experience.
If the Third Hokage knew that Yoruha was only thinking about money, he might have coughed up blood in frustration. After carefully calculating how to nurture Yoruha into a future Hokage, this kid was just focused on payday?
Yoruha was momentarily stunned and noticed the Third Hokage looking at him.
"But I've only completed a few missions. I shouldn't be qualified to become a Chūnin, right?" Yoruha asked.
The Third Hokage smiled and said, "Indeed. But you already possess the leadership skills and strength required of a Chūnin."
"Naturally, you can be promoted."
Yoruha didn't question it further and nodded. "Thank you, Lord Hokage."
Seeing Yoruha accept the promotion so easily, the Third Hokage was very satisfied.
"Why thank me? You should've been promoted a long time ago. If it weren't for the fact that you only graduated from the Ninja Academy less than a year ago, you'd already be a Jōnin."
Yoruha waved his hands quickly, "That's too much. Becoming a Chūnin is already a big deal."
The Third Hokage looked at Kakashi and said, "Your teacher became a Chūnin at six years old. You should learn from him."
Kakashi quickly responded, "That was during wartime. The circumstances were special."
"But only you managed to do it. Both you and your teacher possess outstanding ninja talent."
"I'm very reassured having Kakashi teach you. The future of Konoha will depend on you."
After the Third Hokage finished speaking, Yoruha felt a bit awkward.
Those words felt far too heavy. He thought the Hokage was just being polite, but now it felt excessive.
Yoruha replied, "Lord Hokage, you're exaggerating. I'm just doing my part."
Yoruha was completely sincere.
After becoming a Chūnin, he simply intended to do his job well, earn what he could, and live the life he wanted. He had no interest in getting involved in Konoha's deeper affairs.
However, Kakashi knew that the Third Hokage wouldn't let Yoruha stay uninvolved.
He had already picked up on the meaning behind the old man's words.
While Kakashi was glad, he also couldn't help but worry.
Yoruha was still too young. Getting involved in high-level politics so early wouldn't necessarily benefit him. Even Kakashi himself didn't enjoy participating in those matters.
But he also understood—Yoruha was no longer just some ordinary Genin.
He had fully caught the attention of the Third Hokage.
In Kakashi's eyes, Yoruha's strength had already reached the level of a Hokage.
Even if Yoruha didn't want to get involved, there would be no avoiding it.
Kakashi sighed internally.
"Looks like I'll have to get involved too."
In the past, Kakashi had every reason to stay out of Konoha's internal power struggles.
But now that Yoruha had been drawn into the Third Hokage's sphere, Kakashi had no choice but to follow.